Pioneering the heavy-metal and hard rock movement in the early 1970s, British five-piece URIAH HEEP seems to have acknowledged that their two albums released in 1972, namely “Demons and Wizards” and “Magician’s Birthday,” were onto something and, hence, the band tried to tap into that same fantasy-themed vein with “Return to Fantasy,” released on June 13 th, 1975, via Bronze Records (UK) and Warner Bros. (US). The title was, however, a tad misleading as there is very little in the way of Tolkien-esque fantasy on the album. Bassist John Wetton of KING CRIMSON and ROXY MUSIC fame replaced Gary Thain on this outing, but the band exploited Wetton‘s songwriting and vocal skills surprisingly little; once again, the band’s keyboard wizard Ken Hensley dominates the album when it comes to songwriting credits. Wetton actually quit the band about a year later, and, according to some sources, he was merely a paid session player in the band, providing basslines and the occasional backing vocals. Given his prestigious résumé, URIAH HEEP might have fared even better with this endeavor had they put Wetton‘s skills to more prominent use. The album did soar to Number 7 on the UK album charts, but still, it doesn’t quite meet the high standards those two albums had set for the band. Apart from a few excellent moments, the album does tread in stagnant waters quite a bit as well.
The title track opens the album quite nicely, rolling out the band’s signature quirks – that gritty, Hammond-driven hard-rock shuffle, vocalist David Byron‘s trademark belting, and some nice, spacey Moog licks in the song’s coda. It is by far one of the greatest tracks in the selection, but otherwise, the first half – that is, side A of the original vinyl release – is almost exclusively comprised of the weaker tracks of the album. “Beautiful Dreams” rolls out some nice keyboard work by Hensley – not only does he command Hammond organ like a true keyboard wizard, but also drops some nice Moog lines here and there. While calling URIAH HEEP a prog-rock act would be quite a stretch, songs like these do not fall that far from the mellow side of, say, EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER, to be honest.
Then, “Devil’s Daughter” offers some nice, high-octane boogie, sandwiched somewhere in between. However, songs such as “Shady Lady,” “Prima Donna,” and “Showdown” are paint-by-numbers classic rock, at best. “Prima Donna” is quite the nightmare, what with all those sleazy, Las Vegas trumpets. I reckon adorning early prog and proto-heavy-metal songs with all sorts of orchestral flourishes was all the craze at the time, but this particular effort here is nowhere near the brilliance of, say, “Then” by YES. Of course, URIAH HEEP is not exactly a prog act despite the occasional nod toward that direction, and this monstrosity does a substantial disservice to the band, making them sound almost like a Las Vegas house band pulling a hard-rock routine with glitter and all.
The latter half of the album barely fares any better. “Your Turn to Remember” is a half-assed exercise in mediocrity, albeit one with a shuffle boogie. Then, “Why Did You Go” is a ballad recalling some of the not-so-memorable songs by John Lennon. In fact, the only glimmer of light is provided by the closer, “A Year or A Day,” which resonates with the air of those classic URIAH HEEP bangers. The intro sounds pretty similar to that of “July Morning,” and the stomping riffs that follow resonate thick with the band’s classic sound.
So, with the album boasting four rather banging tracks out of nine, it isn’t a complete disaster, but, with all due respect, it could have been much better, given both the band’s and their session bassist’s résumés. Then again, even with all of its shortcomings, the album fares quite well compared to quite a few of its’ successors – or, to be honest, its title track and closer do. These two bangers have made their way onto a good few Best Of compilations over the years, whereas the other album tracks have not – and for a bloody good reason, too! If I were to purchase this album now, I would opt for the expanded 2004 version if only for the extended version of the title track, clocking in around the 7-minute mark. The demo versions of the album fillers do not offer much in the way of additional value, but, in addition to the extended title track, the alternative demo version of “Beautiful Dream” is pretty good, too. Let’s face it, now and then, you need to listen to some nice, hard-rocking bangers from the dark dungeons of the 1970s, and URIAH HEEP‘s “Return to Fantasy” can provide you with two absolute gems in this respect.
Written by Jani Lehtinen
Tracklist
- Return to Fantasy
- Shady Lady
- Devil’s Daughter
- Beautiful Dream
- Prima Donna
- Your Turn to Remember
- Showdown
- Why Did You Go
- A Year or A Day
Lineup
David Byron – lead vocals
Mick Box – guitars
Ken Hensley – keyboards, guitars, synths, backing vocals
Lee Kerslake – drums, percussion, backing vocals
John Wetton – bass, Mellotron, backing vocals
Label
Bronze / Warner Bros.
Links
http://www.uriah-heep.com/2020Site/Index.html
